We purchased our Cobble Hill property in 1992 after we fell in love with Vancouver Island and the Cowichan Valley while visiting friends in Victoria and exploring the southern Island. On October 2, 1993 we arrived on the property in an old airstream trailer which was to be our temporary home . We awoke the next morning to the sound of trucks ready to pour the foundations of the house. As we were building over the winter, we were very lucky that it was a particularly dry winter that year, which is definitely not always the case here on the BC Coast! We had operated a small Bed & Breakfast in Richmond, in the Metro Vancouver region, and had designed our new home with Bed & Breakfast in mind based on six years of B&B experience. Simon was the general contractor and we did a lot of the finishing work ourselves. We moved into our new home on our anniversary in May, and welcomed our first guests to Cobble House Bed & Breakfast on July 3, 1994.

Ingrid is the innkeeper at Cobble House while Simon has recently retired from his second career at Brentwood College School, where he’s become a masters rower as well as a rowing coach. He is both enjoying more free time for his many interests, and doing small jobs on the side. He retired from his first career as an Executive Chef when we moved to Vancouver Island. Ingrid’s passion is the sport of curling, and you’ll find her on the ice twice a week during fall and winter, or on her walks down Cameron-Taggart Road. Her other passion is the Bed & Breakfast industry and she’s been a volunteer Board member for both the local B&B association but especially for the BC Innkeepers Guild, including being its President for many years. With Cobble House now approaching the start of its 22nd year of operation, she continues to learn new things about the Bed & Breakfast profession, the whole online marketing world, the many wonderful guests we’ve hosted, and the great folks who are part of the hospitality industry.

We’ve never regretted moving to Vancouver Island and love living in the Cowichan Valley. We love having nature immediately around us, and the wildlife that’s so much part of our daily lives (even though they present a big challenge in regards to gardening!). The Cowichan Valley is a lovely rural area, yet centrally located halfway between Victoria and Nanaimo, both of which are about an hour away. With several private boarding schools, wineries and a cidery, top notch restaurants, specialty food producers, artisans and interesting attractions, it’s a region full of creativity and opportunities that we love to share with our guests.

In 2012 Cobble House B&B innkeeper Ingrid was recognized with the Moyra Turner Hospitality Award at the Annual General Meeting of the BC Innkeepers Guild. This award is the Guild’s highest honor and is awarded annually to a member innkeeper who best exhibits hospitality and who best promotes the concept of hospitality on an ongoing basis.

Innkeeper Ingrid says…

Our neighbour Unsworth Vineyards holding an Open House on Saturday July 18, 2015. Their will be new wine releases, barrel sampling with winemaker Daniel Cosman, self-guided tours and scheduled guided tours, live music, oyster bar with wine pairings, local artisans and producers, picnics and restaurant specials! And it's all FREE from 11:00 am to 6:00 pm, so drop on in and check out one of the Cowichan Valley's newer award-winning wineries!

Cobble House B&B in 2015With Cobble House Bed & Breakfast now in it's 21st year of operation, and the innkeeper getting a little older, I've been contemplating the future of our Bed & Breakfast. With 2015 almost a month gone already, what are the goals for this year, and how much longer will we open our doors to all the fabulous guests we've met…...